The Rhizoecidae is a family of the Coccoidea (hodGSon, 2012) containing 233 species worldwide that are hypogaeic and parasitic on plant roots, hence their common name ‘root mealybugs’ (Kozár & Konczné BEnEdicty, 2007). Several species are economically important plant pests and Ripersiella hibisci (Kawai & Takagi, 1971) is a regulated quarantine pest in the European Union (mAlumPhy & roBinSon, 2004). The Asian root mealybug Ripersiella planetica (Williams, 2004) has been found recently in Malta.peer-reviewe
